Greenhouse



May 23, 1939. s sT 2,159,735

GREENHOUSE Filed Feb. 12, 1938 Patented May 23, 1939 T i 2.159.735 GREENHOUSE Ernst Gast, Chicago, Ill., assignor to lckes Braun MilLC'ompany, Chicago, 111., a corporation of Illinois Application February 12, 1938, Serial No. 190,218

5 Claims.

This invention relates to greenhouse structures of the type employing glazed side walls usually supported on low masonry walls and a glazed roof supported on the top edges of the side walls, and

:6 wherein the roof structure includes rafters that form roof glazing bars, and the side wall structure includes side glazing bars usually disposed in the same vertical plane with roof glazing bars.

Heretofore, so far as I am aware, it has been the universal practical to interpose' at the joint between the roof and side wall a wide metal eave plate having the form of a shallow gutter that directly supports the rafters and extends laterally both inwardly and outwardly of the greenhouse structure tocatch and drain off condensed moisture on the inside of the roof and rain on the outside. This wide eave plate casts a considerable shadow and reduces the total amount of sunlight received by the plants. -One object of I :20 this invention has been to provide an improved construction doing away entirely with this wide eave plate and its disadvantages.

Another object has been to provide an im- 1 proved splice for directly and'rigidly connecting 25 the lower ends of the roof glazing bars or rafters to the upper ends of the side glazing bars.

Another object has been to provide an improved roof and side wall joint that will permit the roof and side wall glazings to. be continuous and uninterrupted, and will avoid the necessity of bending the meeting end portions of the glazing bars.

Another object has been to provide an improved roof and side wall joint that will avoid the s35 nailing or screwing of the wooden glazing rafters to an eave member, since such nailed or screwed ends have heretofore been the first spots in greenhouses where decay started. V

Another object has been to provide an im- 40 proved roof and side wall joint of a construction avoiding sharp corners and edges on which icicles of the greenhouse whereitis exposed only to the inside temperature and consequently will not sweat, and which shall be so small, as compared u with the wide eave plates heretofore used, as to cast a much narrower shadow.

Other objects and-attendant advantages of the r invention will be apparent to persons skilled in the art from the following detailed description, taken in connection with the accompanying drawing, wherein I have illustrated an approved embodiment of the invention, and in which-a Fig. 1 is an interior perspective of a fragment of the roof, eave and side wall structure.

Fig. 2 is an enlarged vertical transverse section of the same.

Fig. 3 is a sectional detail on the line 3-3 of Fig. 2.

Fig. 4 is a fragmentary exterior perspective of the joint formed by the meeting end portions of roof and side wall glazing bars, and showing the continuous glazing supports or shoulders thereon.

In the drawing, I0 designates the usual low concrete or brick foundation wall that supports one of the glazed side Walls of the greenhouse.

Laidon and suitably secured to the wall It is the horizontal glazing sill II, on which, at suitably spaced intervals, are secured the vertical wooden side wall frame members l2 that form glazing bars and are mitered at their upper ends to contact with and support the correspondingly mitered lower ends of the wooden rafters l3 forming roof glazing bars, the two ends meeting in the miter joint l4 which bi'sectsthe angle formed by the bars l2 and I3. The bars l2 and 13 are preferably of the same form and size in cross-section, such cross-sections being old and standard and illustrated in Fig. 3, and including lateral ledges or shoulders I5 that seat the edge portions of the glazing panes. Preferably, and as shown, the meeting end portions of the shoulders are chamfered or rounded to form at the joint M a continuously rounded seat or support I 6 for a correspondingly bent glazing member later referred to.

' The meeting ends of bars [2 and I3 are strongly and rigidly connected by an outer angle bar I! overlapping the outer sides of the bars 12 and I3, an inner angle bracket l8 similarly overlapping the inner sides of said bars, and clamp bolts 19 and 20 which also extend through the bars [3 and. I2 respectively. On and crosswise of the outer side of the inner bracket I8 is formed a concave seat 2| to receive and seat a hollow rod 22 that forms an internal eave member and spaces and braces the adjacent connected vertical and inclined supports I2 and I3. The rod 22 is secured to each seat by a bolt 23 extending therethrough and through the seat portion of the inner bracket l8, as clearly shown in Fig. 2. The bolt 23 also serves to attach to the rod 22 the upper end 24 of a vertical side post 25 that is stepped on an internal offset 26 of the foundation wall l0. These side posts 25 are employed at spaced intervals lengthwise of the greenhouse structure and carry most of the roof load. As shown in Fig. 2, the upper ends 24 are concaved to form seats for the cave rod 22.

The glazing comprises wall panes 21, roof panes 28, and, between the panes 21 and 28 and spanning the eave region, a bent pane 29. These panes are supported on the adjacent shoulders 15 of adjacent roof and wall glazing supports [3 and i2; .and for the purpose of shedding rain, they are overlapped, shingle fashion, the lower end portion of the pane 28 overlapping the upper end portion of the intermediate glazing member j 29, and the lower end of the latter similarly overlapping the upper end of the wall glazing pane 21. The intermediate bent portion of the glazing member 29 overlies and substantially fits the rounded corner portions N5 of the meeting shoulder portions id, as clearly shown in Fig. 2. This construction provides uninterrupted glazing from the ridge pole to the sills ll and the only obstruction to the light rays passing therethrough is the relatively narrow eave bar or rod 22, for which a 1 steel pipe amply suflices, the side post 25 lying behind the vertical frame bars l2.

For the purpose of disposing of the internal condensate that forms on the inner sides of the frame bars and glazing, there is formed in the upper surface of each sill l I a longitudinal gutter so, and communicating at intervals with the bot tom of the gutter 30 are downwardly and outwardly inclined drain ducts 3| leading through the outer side of the sill II. The portion of the top surface of the sill I l lying outwardiy of the panes 21 is given a downward slope to shed rain as is common on an ordinary window sash.

The upper portions of certain of the outer angle brackets H are bent upwardly to form stop lugs 32 for a transverse bar indicated in dotted lines at 33 which serves as a ladder support when cleaning, painting, or repairing the roof.

The foregoing description of the structural features of the invention will, I believe, make clear how the same efi'ectuates the stated purposes and objects of the invention. The method of splicing the wooden glazing bars l2 and I3 at their junction in the eave region makes it possible to use bent or curved glass such as 29 along the eaves ofgreenhouses without the necessity of bending or curving the glazing bars themselves. The usual drip conductor which serves to collect the condensation drip along the eaves in known constructions is entirely eliminated, since the condensation follows the glass through the cave region to the sill and is there carried away by the gutter 3E! and its drains 3|. The described construction eliminates the necessity of nailing or screwing the wooden glazing rafters 3 to an eave member; and, due to the round shape of the eave glazing member 29, no icicles can form thereon. The condensation arising from the excessive moisture in the greenhouse and forming on the glass roof surface, while running down the latter collects dirt in its course; but since in the structure herein disclosed there is no stoppage of the flow of the condensate in its downward flow to the gutter 30, there is no collection of dirt to obstruct such downward flow. By eliminating the customary longitudinal wooden or steel eave member, which is exposed to the outside as well as the inside temperature, and locating the eave member entirely on the inside where it is exposed only to the inside temperature, the creation of condensate by the eave member is avoided.

Variations and changes in the structural details may be resorted to within the scope of the appended claims.

I claim:

1. Ina greenhouse structure of the class described, a vertical side glazing bar and an inclined roof glazing bar having their adjacent ends meeting in a joint, outer and inner angle brackets respectively overlying the outer and inner sides of said ends across said joint, clamp bolts passed through said brackets and ends, and an eave member extending crosswise of and bolted to said inner bracket.

2. In a greenhouse structure of the class described, a vertical side'glazing bar and an inclined roof glazing bar having their adjacent ends meeting in a joint, outer and inner angle brackets respectively overlying the outer and inner sides of said ends across said joint, said inner bracket formed with a seat on its inner side, clamp bolts passed through said brackets and'ends, and an eave member occupying said seat and bolted to said inner bracket.

3. In a greenhouse structure of the class described, a vertical side glazing bar and an inclined roof glazing bar having their adjacent ends meeting in a joint, outer and inner angle brackets respectively overlying the outer and inner sides of said ends across said joint, said inner bracket formed with a concave seat on and crosswise of its outer side, clamp bolts passed through said brackets and ends, a tubular eave member occupying said seat, and a securing bolt passed through said eave member and seat.

4. In a greenhouse structure of the class described, the combination with a side glazing bar and a roof glazing bar having their adjacent ends meeting in a joint, of a bracket secured to said bars and spanning said joint, a vertical side post formed with a seat on its upper end, an internal eave member occupying said seat, and a bolt extending through said bracket, eave member and seat and bonding said parts together.

5. In a greenhouse structure of the class de-- scribed, the combination with a vertical side glazing bar and an inclined roof glazing bar having their adjacent ends meeting in a miter joint, of an angle bracket secured at its ends to the inner sides of said bars and spanning said joint and formed with a concave seat, a vertical side post formed with a concave seat on its upper end, an internal eave member in the form of a round rod occupying said seats, and a bolt extending through said bracket seat, rod and post seat and bonding said parts together.

ERNST GAST. 

